Ángel
Manuel Rodríguez
I
know that salvation is by grace and not by works, however meritorious.
But the writer of the Book of Hebrews does not seem to know that simple
truth. For example, in describing the martyrs, he says: 'Others were
tortured, and refused to be released, in order to obtain a better
resurrection' (Heb. 11:35, NIV). Sounds to me as if they looked on
martyrdom as the way to earn their place in the resurrection of the
just. Comment?
A danger we face when reading the
Bible is drawing conclusions based on a superficial reading of the text.
Studying the Bible should not be equated with reading the
Bible. Sometimes I sit down and read the Bible. I do not
ask questions; I just listen to it, to what the Lord is telling me as
a read. This is a devotional reading of the Scriptures. As I read it,
I grow in knowledge but my purpose is to be in touch with my Savior and
to meditate on the meaning of His Word to me.
When
I study the Bible I am also interested in its spiritual impact on my life,
but I am equally interested in understanding as clearly as possible what
the text is saying. So, I ask questions, I stop to read carefully the
text in its context, comparing it with other biblical passages. Hopefully,
out of the experience comes a better understanding. It is that type of
reading that leads me to draw general doctrinal and theological conclusions
and to understand better the intent of a particular biblical writer.
A
devotional reading of Heb 11:35 usually will not raise the question we
are dealing with, but if it would, then we must stop and do a careful
study to uncover what the biblical writer is in fact saying. Perhaps I
should add that often we can grasp the true intent of the author by simply
reading the text without trying to raise questions that are foreign to
the text itself. A devotional reading of Heb 11:35 will usually be taken
to mean that we should never, under any circumstance, relinquish our commitment
to the Lord. We must even be willing to give our life for Him because
of the glorious hope we have in the resurrection. What a beautiful message
of hope and encouragement!
But
we also have the inquisitors who want to obtain a better understanding
of the text. Naturally they have questions. Is Hebrews saying that we
obtain the gift of eternal life, the resurrection, by means of martyrdom?
Is that not salvation through works and not by faith? Is Hebrews' teaching
on salvation in opposition with what we find in the rest of the NT? These
are valid questions for analysis. Where do we begin to look for answers?
Obviously, with the text in question. Then we look at its immediate context
and finally to the epistle itself.
1.
Exploring the Text: Let us start with the text itself and the terminology
used there in our attempt to understand it. The phrasing of the first
part of 11:35b is interesting: "Others were tortured but refused to be
released." The word translated "released" is apolutrosis ("the
offer of release/redemption"). They could have brought torture to an end
by accepting the offer of release but that would have meant giving up
something--the eschatological resurrection. Apolutrosis is a
key word in the soteriological vocabulary of the NT. "Release" or "redemption"
is what Christ obtained for us through his sacrificial death (e.g. Rom
3:24; 1 Cor 1:30). It is ours by faith in what God did for us through
Christ. Hebrews teaches that it is only through the sacrifice of the Son
of God that we have redemption, release from the power of sin and death
(Heb 9:12). Our release/redemption from the power of death has been secured
for us by Jesus. To accept human release is to reject the one given to
us through Jesus. The implication seems to be that some of the heroes
of faith endured death because by faith they knew they had already been
released from its power through the Son.
A
curious detail is the way Hebrews refers to the resurrection. It is "a
better resurrection." Better with respect to what? Another question! A
quick but invalid answer could be, "Better with respect to the second
resurrection mentioned in Rev 20:4-6." But instead of going to Revelation
one should study the context of Heb 11:35b to see whether it explains
what the text means. And of course the context answers the question! Notice
that 11:35b also mentions the resurrection: "Women received back their
dead, raised to life again." This was not the eschatological resurrection
of the dead but a resuscitation which brought a dead person back to life
on this sinful planet, but which did not liberate the individual once
and for all from the power of death. They died again and are awaiting
the final resurrection. The resurrection of those mentioned in the second
part of that verse is "better" because it is resurrection to eternal life.
Nevertheless, both types of resurrection are a loving gift from God.
Finally,
it is also important to notice the verb tynchano, translated
"gain." It really means "attain." "Gain" could give the impression of
a commercial transaction in which we give something in order to gain something
else. "Attain" does not imply earning merit for ones actions. A study
of the use of that verb in the New Testament indicates that in theological
contexts it always refers to elements related to God's eschatological
salvation. In fact, the verb "always signifies a gift, never one's own
work" (G. Haufe, "Tynchano meet, attain; happen, turn out,"
Exegetical Dictionary of the NT, vol. 3, Horst Balz and Gerhard
Schneider, eds. [Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1993], p. 372). That should
alert us to the fac that Hebrews is not dealing here with salvation by
works but with faith in God's promise of the resurrection that expresses
itself in unquestionable commitment to Him.
2.
Exploring the Immediate Context: We should also look at the immediate
context of Heb 11:35. Hebrews 11 contains a list of individuals who modeled
in their lives the true nature of faith. Whatever they did was done because
of their faith in God and not in order to obtain acceptance by God. The
phase, "through faith" precedes their names and acts of heroism. Therefore,
11:35b should be read in conjunction with 11:33 where the introductory
phrase is used to modify each of the items in the list that follows: "Through
faith conquered kingdoms, administer justice, . . . [Through faith] Women
received back their dead, raised to life again. [Through faith] Others
were tortured and refused to be released, so that they might gain a better
resurrection." Before they were tortured they were already fully committed
to the Lord and looking forward to the promise of the resurrection. It
was not that now through martyrdom they were finally going to make theirs
the future resurrection, but rather that by faith that resurrection was
already theirs and they were not willing to give up that wonderful gift
of divine love in order to live a few more years here on earth. Faith,
according to Heb 11, is the certainty of what we do not see which expresses
itself in endurance and perseverance. To separate that faith-commitment
from the willingness to die for the Lord, transmuting the last into meritorious
acts, is a misunderstanding of the meaning of the text.
3.
Exploring the Epistle: The epistle to the Hebrews has a pastoral
concern running through it from beginning to end. The letter is written
to a group of believers whose faith is being shaken and who are about
to reject the Christian faith. They had accepted Jesus as Savior and Lord
(2:3; 7:14) and enjoyed all the benefits that accompanied that decision
(6:4-5). They had suffered on account of their faith (10:32-34). But now
they are losing their faith and drifting away (2:1). The hope they accepted
had not been materialized and they are questioning its relevancy (10:35-37).
In answer to that pastoral problem Paul, among many other things, exhorts
them to "hold firmly to the end the confidence we had at first" (3:14),
to show "diligence to the very end" (6:11).
Paul is not exhorting them to add
to their faith works in order to gain salvation but rather to retain their
faith to the end in order not to lose what is already theirs. Endurance
and perseverance are indispensable and express themselves in obedience
to the message that was proclaimed to them. The alternative is apostasy.
Paul's pastoral advice is, "See to it, brothers, that none of you has
a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God" (3:12).
The heroes of faith endured all for God and did not give up their faith.
They stand as examples to those who put their faith in Christ.
Hmm.
. . My devotional reading of the text may have been the right one!
2001
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